Tajikistan started deporting residents of Zherge-Tal district with Kyrgyz passports. Local residents told 24.kg news agency.
According to them, Tajikistan has toughened passport control over the last week.
«Those who have citizenship of Kyrgyzstan are identified and immediately taken to the regional center. They demand to urgently renounce Kyrgyz passports and obtain citizenship of Tajikistan. Those who disagree are deported to Kyrgyzstan through Karamyk checkpoint in Chon-Alai district of Osh region. They don’t even have time to take their belongings,» a local resident told.
According to him, 30,00 ethnic Kyrgyz live in Zherge-Tal district. Mainly young people have citizenship of Kyrgyzstan.
«Previously, people with Kyrgyzstan’s citizenship obtained migration certificates and lived and worked freely, since many have parents and relatives here. But the situation has changed. Number of schools with Kyrgyz language of instruction is reduced, they are all switching to teaching in the Tajik language,» the local resident added.
